Strings Italian Cafe

I’m mostly writing this review about Raul, the waiter/​host/​manager – not sure what his title is, but he seems to function as all of these. (The caesar salad I had was good, and the bread yummy and warm.)
It’s really hard to be a customer service person, especially a restaurant like this that has both regular customers and those who just come in because it’s close to other places they have to go. Raul is so good at what he does. I saw him work with very different kinds of customers, and he was outstanding with all of them (those he has to slow down and speak up for; those who are frustrated they can’t find the lawyer’s office and decide to take it out on the guy who tells them the espresso machine is down; those who push back against that 75 cents for an extra salad dressing to go – they all loved him when they left).
He’s cheerful, engaged, seems genuinely interested in what his customers are saying and is incredibly efficient. He knows his customers’ names and needs, and he’s attentive to new ones like me. He really seems to care about what he does. He’s exactly what this restaurant needed (I was here about a year ago, and it was a bit sad, frankly).
Sometimes it’s much more than food that brings you back to a restaurant. I would come back to Strings for Raul. (And, the chicken caesar salad :)

The food is great but the service is awful! My family and I used to go there often! But until the lazy waitress, whatever her name is, told us to never come back then we haven’t gone back. She couldn’t handle the stress and when we asked for bread she took her sweet time and never came to greet us, or ask we needed anything. We decided to leave and as we are walking out she says «I hope you dont come back»! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? Until they get a new waitresses, we will be back. It will be too bad if that restaurant goes out of business.

Nice cozy place and perfect for the couple that wants a quiet evening to themselves.

I’ve been to this place several times and for the most part leave 95% happy. This place can be rather busy during dinner time and on the weekends, which is to be expected. The service here can also be a hit or miss because of how busy it can get but the times that I have dined here it has been pretty decent. I have also called in my order on a busy weekend and waited about 10 – 15 minutes for someone to get my order and lay for it, which was slightly annoying since I called, because of this, the food is cold but it’s nothing that a zap in the microwave can’t fix. The food here is really good and the pastas are always cooked to perfection and the sauce is amazing! I can’t say the same for the soup, so don’t say that I didn’t warn you.
For my last comment, the place needs a major remodel because the place has been around for awhile and everything inside is outdated. The carpets are gross, seats on the chairs need to be changed and the place could use a paint job, then it would look like its from the 20^th century. Parking here is shared with other business but I’ve never had a problem with finding a parking spot here.

The food at Strings is delicious! We thoroughly enjoyed everything we ordered (the artichoke dip is amazing) This is our new favorite local Italian restaurant, and the prices are so reasonable! We will definitely come back to dine again and again. (I subtracted 1 star for the interior appearance, some updates would do a world of good. But honestly with the food quality as high as it is you find yourself not caring how outdated the design is)

The male host didn’t greet us when we walked in the restaurant. He hosted a few tables before even seating us. Our waitress was friendly and got our orders right away. I had the spaghetti with meatballs and it was just OKAY. My husband had the fettuccine Alfredo with chicken and the chicken was bland and very chewy. In my opinion, I make better homemade pasta.
I was really hoping we’d have a good pasta spot around our area. Def not coming back here.

My three girlfriends and i celebrated my 65^th birthday on Tuesday, October 27^th. We had the best waitress, Lindsey, and all four of us were extremely satisfied with the service AND the food. The bread, soup, salad, and COMPLIMENTARY dessert were delicious. It is very reasonably priced and I cannot wait to return.

ok this the best italian food in the bay better than macaroni grill my waitress dedra is the best ask for her she gets it done quick oh the artichoke dip super good the scampi super the salad great go here

I’m mad I haven’t wrote a review yet! Anywho… we LOVE this place. We always order the stuffed shells with pepperoni (awesome combination), chicken parm, lasagna with fettuccine, and chicken ceasar salad. You get really good bread and soup. We eat out A LOT but eating String’s is a treat. The portions aren’t big but the food is A1.

The staff is totally cool and the all you can eat pasta is all I could ever want! The prices are great and and there are a lot of options. You can’t go wrong with Strings!

I think I have a soft spot for this place because it reminds me of the Midwestern Italian restaurants I grew up with and enjoyed so much. We ate at a fancier Italian place in Berkeley recently, and while it was really good, it just wasn’t the same. You have to have salad and bread, preferably with an unhealthy dressing. You have to have red sauce and lots of cheese on just about everything. You have to have somewhat dated Olive Garden-​style décor that has not been updated recently. So yeah, this place was it.
I was surprised at how large the menu was. Usually that’s not a good sign. But we liked everything we ordered. I had the lasagna combo, which also came with meatballs. It was VERY filling. My husband had ravioli, which looked homemade and tasted great. I had enough leftovers for another whole meal.
Service was good, not great. But we were on a relaxed kid-​free outing, so we didn’t mind being left alone a little. I’d like to come back with the rest of my family another time. There are a lot of things left to try!

My family went to Strings for lunch. Our server was friendly and patient with my parents, who had a tough time deciding what to eat.
I ordered the lasagna pastry with the café salad. Strings is the only place where I will pick the salad instead of the soup to go with my meal. I love the sunflower seeds and the raisins in their café salad. It tasted just as good as the last time I ate it.
Our food arrived quicker than I expected, but there were only two tables occupied at the time. My lasagna pastry was really good. It’s my favorite thing at Strings. I prefer the meat sauce to the alfredo sauce on the side though.
My only complaint was about the bread. We asked for more bread several times Our server told us it was coming right out of the oven. But every time it was placed at our table, the pieces of bread were just warm, not piping hot like they should have been if they had just come out of the oven.
But other than that, a great experience.

Its a nice place to get Italian food. I walked in and placed a take out order. I was walked through the menu and served a drink while i waited. I decided on the pan fried ravioli. In retrospect the only odd thing I was not asked what kind of dressing I wanted on my salad. The raviolis were on the well done side, The sauce was good and with plenty of cheese.

Strings Italian Café is one of the few restaurants that can get my mom out of the house for dinner. Generally she would rather eat at home, so that is something! Even though Strings is a franchise, it still feels run like a family business. The portions aren’t huge unless you’re there on Wednesday’s All You Can Eat Pasta Night. Still, the food is rich and filling.
My dad always sticks to the Lasagne and Meatballs, probably so he can take some home in a doggy bag. My mom enjoyed her Minestrone soup. Our super nice waiter gave her a small plate of spaghetti for free! This last time I tried the special Chicken & Artichoke Ravioli Lombardi. It was pretty tasty with lots of artichoke hearts but only four ravioli.
Strings décor is pretty run-​of-​the-​mill, with hanging plastic plants and a hunter green, formica atmosphere. It always reminds me of Gordon Ramsay Kitchen Nightmares where he takes a rather plain restaurant and transforms it from 90s dated ambience into a contemporary look. I suspect the customers like Strings just as it is though.

Having stuffed mushroom appetizer, salad and tangerine ice tea. I worked here for 4 years 7 years ago. Always great service and food.

I am a veteran of this restaurant. I moved to El Cerrito in 2003 and quickly became a regular here. One of the things I USED to love about it was that the staff recognized us when we would walk in, and the service was outstanding. The food was a good value and the menu changed on a regular basis. After moving away from this neck of the woods in 2012, it’s not as convenient to go here for dinner so we took a break. We would come back once every 6 — 8 months, and were still recognized. Then tonight happened…
I am HOPING that it was because we were there on a Monday night that many aspects of the meal weren’t quite right. Let’s start off with service. The gentleman who seated us also was our server. No big deal but he wasn’t nearly as attentive as the manager who used to always be in that role. Did he make sure our drinks were always filled? No. Did he check up on us once we had our food? No. He honestly didn’t seem all that interested in the diners. He seemed more interested in yapping it up behind the bar – loudly.
Now onto the food itself: I know what I like on this menu and what to order based on my mood. I went for the eggplant parm and my partner ordered the gorgonzola pork. What arrived to our table was NOT what we expected. Granted, my dish was fine but his was something off of the child size menu. The pieces of pork on his plate were the size of silver dollars and there were only about 4 of them. His potato portion was tiny, and even the vegetables appears to be in the micro category. In the past, the portions at Strings used to be HUGE! He was always filled up with whatever he ordered. When we asked our server what the story was, his response was that higher ups were dictating these new portions. To me, that indicates the slow downward spiral of a restaurant. When profits start to effect the way your plate appears, it’s time to find a new place to eat.
To top off the evening, our bill was charged incorrectly and had to be redone. That has never happened before.
Since I have been to String’s for this long, I might return on a different night. I will NEVER come back on a Monday. Hopefully someone from this location reads this review and gives that night a head’s up about things they need to change!

I love their Pizza, under $ 16 for a medium pizza with 2 toppings plus soup and salad.
Calzone was really big
The Meat Lasagna was also great.
This is our regular pasta go to place.
The staff are nice and friendly including the owner.

I had the seafood bisque and the summer carribean chicken salad. This is my favorite salad. It is chock full of chicken, strawberries, Mandarin orange slices and walnuts on a bed of romaine lettuce. The dressing is light and tasty. The service was quick and welcoming. I always appreciate coming here. Thank you :)

Not really a big fan of pasta but this is the BEST Italian café I’ve ever been too. Way better than Macaroni Grill &&. Olive Garden. Best tasting Pasta &&. Salad, the bread was delicious too. Good customer service. Walked out full and sleepy. Just found my new Italian restaurant :).

Chicken Parmesan is the item I mainly get. The inside has been renovated so it’s slightly better than what it used to look like.
The service has always been on point! Salad, chicken Alfredo and meatballs are also good things to order. You’re drink of choice (soda or water) is always full. If you go often then you’ll become a regular and you’ll get even better service =)
Parking has never been an issue and you can always be seated right away. Small but not too small where you don’t’ have room to extend your arms. Looking for an Italian place but not wanting to deal with a big chain? Try this little spot!